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| mikedillard.com |
Mike Dillard is well known as the host of the number one self-help podcast on iTunes, Self-Made Man, interviewing guests like Shark Tank star Daymond John and TV personality Mike Rowe. But even more interesting than who he’s interviewed on the show, is why he started it in the first place.
Dillard started Self-Made Man with one mission: to earn the millions he would need to fund the launch of a new hydroponics business that he believes could have the potential to change the food industry. It was an ambitious plan that ran contrary to the Silicon-Valley model of raising a bunch of money from outside investors and giving away large portions of equity and control of the company. But Dillard's plan seems to be working.
The ag-tech business that Mike Dillard launched already has prototypes of their in-home hydroponics system and has brought on notable board members like XPRIZE founder, Peter Diamandis. But the path toward Dillard’s current success wasn't linear. In fact, it wasn't until he hit financial rock bottom in his twenties that he realized he needed to change the trajectory of his entrepreneurial career.
In my candid interview with Mike Dillard, he shared the amazing moments of his entrepreneurial successes, as well as the lessons learned during some of his crushing lows, and how those experiences shaped the approach to his audacious new venture.
"I was in my twenties, making millions of dollars a year but had come from a family and a background where that kind of money was unheard of. I had zero education when it came to my financial education," said Dillard. "What did I do with the money my business was making? I did what every single guy in his twenties would do in that position—I blew it on the giant house, boats, cars, traveled the world, and checked off every single item that had been on my dream board, which was a hell of a lot of fun."
Getting Rich vs. Building Wealth
Dillard made his millions as a young twenty-something through a network marketing business, selling nutritional supplements to customers and building his own team of salespeople to further generate residual income. It was this experience that, according to Dillard, really taught him how to own and operate a successful business.
"The best thing about the network marketing industry is that it's a crucible that will expose every single weakness you have as an entrepreneur," said Dillard. "But it will also provide you with an opportunity for a really supportive environment where education and training and help is more readily available than any other industry out there."
After a few years of ups and downs, Dillard became so good network marketing that he wrote an instruction manual on how to be a source of value for customers and potential new salespeople in the industry. He started selling the manual online for $39 per copy and before he knew it, he was selling 40 to 50 copies a day. That manual became the best-selling book, Magnetic Sponsoring, which set Dillard's career on a whole new trajectory.
Source: forbes.com
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